Ra Taejoo (1945-) is a South Korean poet and educator. He is one of the foremost writers of traditional sentimental poetry in Korea, and is known for his personalized style of traditional sentimentality. Focusing on the theme of the rural homeland, Ra made his literary debut in 1971 via the Seoul Shinmun New Writer’s Contest with the poem Under the Bamboo Grove. The popular reception of Ra’s representative poem Flowers earned him the moniker “Poet of Flowers.” Ra is the recipient of multiple literary distinctions including the Earth Literary Prize, South Chungcheong Culture Prize, the Chong Chi-Yong Literature Prize, and the Sowol Poetry Award.
1. Life
Ra Taejoo was born in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province in 1945 and graduated from Kongju National Teachers College and the Chungnam National University Graduate School of Education. Upon graduating from the former in 1964, Ra served as an elementary school teacher for 43 years until 2007. He made his literary debut in 1971 when his poem “Daesup araeseo” won the Seoul Shinmun New Writers’ Contest. He began his literary career in earnest in 1973 with the publication of his first poetry collection Under the Bamboo Grove. In 2007, Ra retired from his post as principal of Janggi Elementary School in Gongju and in 2010 took up the role of director at the Gongju Culture Center. Ra’s poem “Pulkkot” is a beloved classic still remembered fondly by the South Korean public.
“Pulkkot” was composed in 2002, when Ra served as the principal of Sangseo Elementary School in Gongju. He had taken his students outside for special classes and instructed them to draw plants and flowers, but the children returned with lackluster results. The students asked Ra how to capture flowers in their pictures, and Ra’s answer came in the form of the poem “Pulkkot.”
Ra claims to have had three dreams as a young man: to become a poet, to marry a beautiful woman, and to live in Gongju. He remarked that he had achieved all three by middle age. Ra also claimed that he is proud of having continued to write poetry, continued to live in the countryside, continued to work as an elementary school teacher, and lived without a car—although he had to give up one of these things upon retirement.
Following the publication of his first poetry collection Daesup araeseo in 1973, Ra released at least one new book a year, for a total of nearly 40 poetry and children’s poetry collections, and over 10 essay collections and children’s books. Over the course of his active career, Ra described the environment and daily life around him, but a brush with terminal pancreatic problems in 2007 and his miraculous recovery changed his course. Following the incident, Ra has begun to write poetry to move and comfort readers’ hearts. With his love for life and nature, Ra conveys heartfelt emotion and sentiment to his readers with the mindset of watering a withering plant.
Ra’s poetry collections include Daesup araeseo(1973), The Drawing of Makdong-ri(1980), Even Should I Have Feelings of Love(1985), The Empty-Handed Song(1988), My Lantern Watches over You(1987), Tearful(1991), Postcard from the Mountains(2002), Taking on a Slight Purple Hue(2005), Meeting a Fish(2006), Becoming a Flower, Becoming a Bird(2007), and Blinding Skin(2008), and his published essay collections include Starlight Dwelling in the Bamboo Grove(1981). Ra served in the position of chairman of the deliberation committee at the Society of Korean Poets.
2. Writing
From the beginning of his literary career, Ra’s driving poetic philosophy has been simplicity, as clear from his explorations of nature, succession and development of traditional sentimental poetry, and practice and exploration of love.
Sentimentality and modesty
Rather than focus on the traditional perspectives of thematic or ideology-centered poetry, Ra emphasizes feelings and sentimentality, expressing his emotions in modest yet stylized ways. The concise nature of his poems and the use of repetition makes Ra’s work easily approachable yet resonant—characteristics that define his masterpiece “Pulkkot.” The poem consists of three lines: “When I look close, only then it is beautiful/When I look on, only then is it lovely/Just like you are.” The modest composition conveys the poet’s sincerity to readers, who have responded in kind. The repetition that characterize Ra’s poetry may also be found in this poem, with the use of synonyms such as “beautiful” and “lovely.” The repetition of such commonplace words easily communicates the sentiment that the object of description is beautiful and lovely. The simple rhythm is also in line with Ra’s philosophy on poetry, which argues against the abstract nature of contemporary poetry.
Practice and exploration of love
Ra’s poetry underwent a notable change in 2007 with the poet’s struggle with a nearly terminal condition. His life-or-death experience transformed his poetry, which is clearly visible in the 2009 anthology You Are Too. In this collection, Ra communicates the pain of his condition, the love for the life he miraculously recovered, and the serenity of a man who has experienced death. Critical reception described the anthology as having “the heart of a saint and the heart of a child” and is a reflection of Ra’s determination to bring joy, comfort, and empathy to the hearts of readers—all of which ultimately leads to love. For Ra, love is expressed as poetry.
The poems in his new collection Mistaken(2017) are even shorter than Ra’s earlier works, but the internal distance of his poetry has only increased. The text of Poem, “Go around and around/Do not hesitate/And come here quickly now/Come here without care for preparation//That is love/That is love/That is poetry/Do you not agree” asserts that real love is the act of rushing to another’s side without hesitation or preparation. Love is unconditional, and is likened to poetry. Through this poem, Ra expresses the unconditional nature of poetry in his life. In the poem Time on This Earth, the poet asserts that love must continue in longing, even if the counterpart does not wait for the self. The love that comes from attention to the small, humble things in life is a running theme in Ra’s work and is put into practice as a way of bringing comfort and healing.
Reference
[1] Kim, Sinyeong, “The Poem of Gwanghwamun, Resonating 25 Years on,” Chosun Ilbo, October 15, 2015, http://biz.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2015/10/15/2015101500327.html.
[2] “EBS Guest Special—A Love Letter to the World: Meet Poet Ra Taejoo, Writer of the Poem ‘Pulkkot’,” EBS STORY, October 16, 2019, https://ebsstory.blog.me/221674473584.
[3] Jeong, Ji-eun, “Research on the Meter of Ra Taejoo’s Early Poems,” Dongguk University Graduate Thesis, 2017.
[4] “‘Pulkkot’ Poet Ra Taejoo Moves Hearts: Finding Beauty Even in Humble Things,” News1, October 6, 2019, http://news1.kr/articles/?3736264.
[5] “About the Poet,” Ra, Taejoo, Doraoneun gil, Purungil, 2014.
[6] “‘Pulkkot’ Poet Ra Taejoo Moves Hearts: Finding Beauty Even in Humble Things,” News1, October 6, 2019, http://news1.kr/articles/?3736264.
[7] “About the Author,” Ra, Taejoo, Gajang yeppeun saengageul neoege jugo sipda, RH Korea, 2017.
[8] Jeong, Ji-eun, “Research on the Meter of Ra Taejoo’s Early Poems,” Dongguk University Graduate Thesis, 2017.
[9] Jang, Gyeong-ryeol, “With the Heart of a Saint and a Child,” Bonjilgwa Hyeonsang 18, Bonjilgwa Hyeonsang, 2009.
[10] Seo, Gi-ryeong, “Research on the Poetry of Ra Taejoo,” Korea National University of Education Graduate Thesis, 2019.
